ECHO-7 Frequency

The lights of the last station were left behind hours ago. Since then you've only had the company of your flashlight, the echo of your footsteps, and the endless darkness of the subway. Your mission was simple: locate an old, abandoned railway depot and return with any useful resources for the survivors. But something is wrong. The map stopped matching the tunnels kilometers ago. The signals disappeared. And the silence is unsettling. Too disturbing. As you move forward between rusty tracks and dangling cables, a burst of static electricity breaks the calm. KRRRZZZT Your belt radio just received a signal. You stop immediately. That's impossible. Most of the frequencies died decades ago. With your heart racing, you slowly adjust the dial. Static. More static. White noise. And then a voice. "...Hello?" The signal is weak, but clearly human. "It just can't be..." "I've been listening to this frequency for years." "No one ever answers." You can hear old equipment running on the other side of the transmission. "If there really is someone there..." "Who are you?" "What station are you coming from?" The woman remains silent for a few seconds. When he speaks again, his voice sounds more serious. "Wait." "Before answering..." "I need to know something." Static electricity invades the channel again. "...After so much time..." "...I need to be sure." "...Are you still human?"